


Sunrise

by aserenitatum



Series: Pitch Perfect 2 Extended [8]
Category: Pitch Perfect (Movies)
Genre: Death of a Relative, F/F, it has a happy ending i promise
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-29
Updated: 2018-04-29
Packaged: 2019-04-29 16:24:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,595
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14476575
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aserenitatum/pseuds/aserenitatum
Summary: Aubrey shoulders are slumped, and she has her legs up on the bench, arms wrapped around them as she stares off into the distance.Stacie doesn’t have to follow her gaze to know she’s not staring at anything in particular, and her heart breaks.





	Sunrise

**Author's Note:**

> based on a prompt on an anonymous prompt I got on Tumblr.
> 
> this one's for you, oma Liesje. May you finally run free with the angels.

When she gets to the house,one of Aubrey’s older brothers opens the door and they exchange a quick hug before he lets her in.  

“She’s on the back porch,” he says and Stacie doesn’t feel even a little guilty about unceremoniously dropping her stuff in the entryway and walking past the other rooms in the house straight to the back. She stands in front of the screen door, watches Aubrey for a few seconds.  

Her shoulders are slumped, and she has her legs up on the bench, arms wrapped around them as she stares off into the distance. Stacie doesn’t have to follow her gaze to know she’s not staring at anything in particular, and her heart breaks.  

The screen door squeaks when she pushes it open and Aubrey’s shaken out of her reverie, looks to the side and smiling brokenly when she sees Stacie.  

“Hey, hun,” Stacie says softly, carefully.  

Aubrey doesn’t say anything, but her lower lip trembles and Stacie’s in front of her in a flash, dropping to her knees in front of the bench and wrapping her arms around Aubrey. 

Aubrey cries into her shoulder, hugs Stacie back, fingers digging into her sides as she clutches Stacie desperately.  

“It’s okay, baby, let it all out,” Stacie coos, softly stroking her hand down Aubrey’s back.  

They stay like that for a long while, Stacie’s shirt becoming damp with Aubrey’s tears and she can’t help but let out a few tears of her own at the sound of Aubrey’s heart wrenching sobs. 

She’s down to sniffling with the occasional hiccup and Stacie pulls away enough to sit on the bench next to her, pulling Aubrey’s body into her own so the blonde’s legs are thrown over her own and she can wrap an arm around Aubrey’s shoulders.  

“How was your flight?” Aubrey asks through her tears and Stacie smiles softly at her.  

She runs her fingers in an idle pattern across Aubrey’s thighs to calm her.  

“It was fine,” Stacie says with a shrug. “I wish I had gotten here earlier.”  

“It’s okay,” Aubrey says, voice still shaky but she seems considerably more calm than before.  

“Was that your first cry?” Stacie asks, even though she knows the answer.  

Aubrey nods, heavily leans her head against Stacie’s shoulder.  

“How’s your mom doing?”  

“Not good,” Aubrey says, voice cracking as a wave of emotion overtakes her again.  

“That’s to be expected.”  

“You didn’t see her when you came in?” Aubrey asks, sighs softly when Stacie reaches up to tug her hair free from its ponytail.  

Stacie runs her fingers through Aubrey’s hair, slowly and soothingly as she feels the blonde relax against her.  

“No, I only saw Ben and I came straight to you,” Stacie explains.  

“You should really go say hi to the family,” Aubrey chides gently, even though she makes no move to get away from Stacie, and if anything, she slumps even closer.  

“I’m a bit more preoccupied with my wife right now,” Stacie says, turns her head to see the ghost of a smile cross Aubrey’s face.  

She presses her lips against Aubrey’s forehead, lingering there when Aubrey sighs and slowly closes her eyes.  

Aubrey shudders and she’s crying again, but she’s so quiet that Stacie’s not sure Aubrey even knows she’s crying.  

“Do you want to talk about it?” Stacie asks, reaches up and wipes away Aubrey’s tears.  

Aubrey shakes her head, but it’s not even a minute later when she says, “If one more person tells me it’s all part of God’s plan I’m going to fucking murder someone.”    

Stacie doesn’t answer her because she agrees that it’s definitely not the right thing to say. 

“Or, at least she’s in a better place now,” Aubrey adds with a soft growl.  

“Have you had the ‘at least she lived a long life, many people die young’ one yet?” Stacie asks softly and Aubrey narrows her eyes.  

“I dare somebody to say that to me,” Aubrey says lowly and Stacie just kisses her forehead quickly.  

As quickly as her flash of anger had appeared, it’s gone, and Aubrey’s leaning heavily against Stacie again, eyes closing to avoid crying.  

Stacie’s stomach grumbles loudly and Aubrey moves away with a sharp laugh.  

“I’m such a bad host,” Aubrey says with a smile and it’s the first one that’s genuine, that reaches her eyes and Stacie’s glad to see it.  

“Technically, Ben’s a bad host because he opened the front door,” Stacie says, understands most of the intricacies of Southern hospitality by now.  

Aubrey nods, but still leans away from Stacie.  

“You need to eat,” she says, slips her hand into Stacie’s.  

“Have you eaten?” Stacie asks, tugging softly on Aubrey’s hand.  

Aubrey doesn’t look at her, so she has her answer.  

“Aubrey…” she says with a soft sigh. Aubrey looks at her, and her eyes are filled with sorrow as she shakes her head.  

“I’m not hungry.”  

“Aubrey, you need to take care of yourself… I’ll eat if you do,” Stacie says and Aubrey quirks her mouth, considers the option.  

“Okay,” she whispers and Stacie smiles. “Only because you need to eat.”  

Stacie lets herself be led to the kitchen, but when Aubrey starts moving around the space she looks a little lost, so Stacie stops her, corners her into the counter, traps her with a hand on either side.  

“Let me,” she says, pressing her lips against Aubrey’s temple. Aubrey shudders, but nods and when Stacie steps away she lifts herself onto the kitchen counter.  

“Can you talk to me?” Aubrey asks softly while Stacie gathers ingredients to make a sandwich.  

“What do you want me to talk about?” Stacie asks, glances at Aubrey quickly to make it clear that she’s open to it.  

“Anything,” Aubrey says, voice small.  

“I couldn’t fall asleep during the flight to Atlanta, so after a while I gave up and watched a movie. There was guy sitting on the other side of the aisle of me and he was travelling with his daughter. She was maybe three or four?”  

Stacie’s opening cupboards left and right, and Aubrey smiles briefly.  

“Left of the fridge,” she interjects, watches as Stacie opens said cupboard and smiles widely upon finding the peanut butter.  

“Thanks. Anyway, the kid was asleep for most of the flight, and he fell asleep maybe an hour after we took off. They were asleep for most of the flight, but the girl, she woke up an hour before we were supposed to land and the dad must not have put the seatbelt on her right or something because she wiggled out of it.”  

When Stacie glances at Aubrey, the woman is listening intently, so she continues.  

“She had these crayola markers and one of the flight attendants was walking past and helped her out, took off the caps and opened the tray table for her but the kid wasn’t feeling like painting on paper, I guess, because she started drawing on the dad’s arm. And he was knocked out, like, dead to the world asleep.”  

“Like you sleep?” Aubrey interjects and Stacie shoots her a glare even though she’s secretly happy to hear the joking words come from Aubrey.  

“This kid stands up on her seat and starts drawing on his face. Just, goes to town on him. He had whiskers and a moustache and two extra purple eyebrows and flowers on his face in different colours.”  

“Oh no,” Aubrey softly whispers.  

“Do you want to hear the best part?” Stacie asks, and she’s done making two sandwiches so she starts putting all the things back in their places.  

“Yes.”  

“He didn’t notice. When he woke up, he saw the doodles on his arm and shrugged and the kid didn’t say anything to him about his face. Nobody told him he had drawings on his face. I saw him walk off the plane with a stick figure drawing of himself on his cheek.” 

“You’re messing with me,” Aubrey accuses but Stacie stops, turns to the blonde and shakes her head earnestly.  

“I promise you I’m not.”  

“I wonder how far he got before someone said something to him.”  

“I wouldn't know,” Stacie says with a shrug, moves her plate closer to Aubrey as she lifts the sandwich and takes a bite. “But the girl looked so pleased with herself.”  

Aubrey’s smiling, and it’s a beautiful sight to see, and Stacie can’t help but smile softly at her.  

“Bite?” Stacie offers, holds up her sandwich.  

Aubrey hesitates, but then leans in and takes a bite, immediately grimacing when she chews.  

“What the fuck is that?” she asks around a mouthful of bread.  

“Peanut butter, jelly, nutella sandwich,” Stacie says with a cheeky grin.  

“I can’t believe you let me bite into that,” Aubrey says, still chewing before swallowing it down in one gulp. “That is vile.”  

“Leave my sandwich cuisine alone,” Stacie says, makes eye contact and holds it as she slowly takes another bite of the sandwich. “I made one for you, though.”  

She slides the plate towards Aubrey and the woman looks at it with suspicion. 

“What’s in it?”  

“Ham and cheese,” Stacie says.  

“Butter?”  

“Low-fat,” Stacie says, rolls her eyes. “I wasn’t born yesterday.”  

She counts it as a win when Aubrey reaches out and picks up the sandwich, taking a bite out of it. She eats half of it before putting it back down on the plate, softly pushing the plate away from herself to indicate she’s done and Stacie happily picks up the leftover sandwich and bites into it. 

“I’m so happy you’re here,” Aubrey whispers, feels like she needs to express her gratitude.  

“Of course,” Stacie says, smiles softly at her.  

“How was San Diego?”  

“It was so much fun,” Stacie says, and seeing her light up with excitement soothes Aubrey’s heart a little.  

“Tell me about it?” Aubrey says softly and Stacie opens her mouth to answer her when they hear a commotion near the kitchen.  

Aubrey’s eyes go wide and she nudges Stacie back as she quickly hops down from the kitchen counter.  

Aubrey’s oldest brother comes into the kitchen and is surprised to find them there.  

“Stacie! When did you get here?” he asks, smiling widely and Stacie frowns quickly before schooling her features, his joviality a shock.  

“About an hour ago,” she answers, steps close to give him a hug. “I’m so sorry for your loss, Will.” 

“Thank you, Stacie. She’s in a better place now,” he says earnestly and Stacie has to bite her lip hard not to say anything as she glances at Aubrey over Will’s shoulder, finds the blonde glaring at the back of Will’s head.  

“Why is it so quiet in the house? Where’s Mary and the kids?” Stacie asks, moves to stand by Aubrey as Will gets a glass of water.  

“Cora should be around here somewhere but all the other kids are at the zoo. We wanted to get them out of the house,” he explains and Stacie nods in understanding. “They should be back this afternoon.”  

Aubrey takes a long, deep breath and Stacie’s head snaps towards her as they make eye contact and Aubrey shakes her head softly, but Stacie still takes her hand and squeezes it softly.  

Will turns to look at them, eyes falling to their clasped hands and he smiles but Stacie can see the cracks in the façade, sees how his smile doesn’t quite reach his eyes.  

He shifts then, looks over at Aubrey.  

“Dad’s going to be here tomorrow morning,” he says with a quick grimace and Aubrey sighs deeply again.  

“Okay, thanks,” Aubrey says softly with a wry smile. Her words have a dismissive nature to them and Will takes the hint, leaves with a quick smile.  

Aubrey’s grip on her hand is tight and even though she looks okay, Stacie knows she isn’t. She tugs Aubrey close but the blonde seems reluctant, until their eyes meet and Stacie sees that she’s trying to hold it together and Stacie knows that embracing her will crumble her resolve. 

She knows that Aubrey needs to cry, though, so she softly tugs on Aubrey’s hand again and the woman comes crashing into her, burying her face in Stacie’s neck as she wraps her arms around Stacie’s middle, all but collapsing into her as the tears come back with a vengeance. Stacie holds her tightly, hand reaching up to cradle Aubrey’s head against her neck, her other hand rubbing back and forth over Aubrey’s back soothingly.  

“I’ve got you,” Stacie whispers, closing her eyes to avoid crying herself. “We’ll get through it.”  

Aubrey’s shaking, so Stacie languidly drags her fingers across her scalp, tries to get Aubrey at least calm enough to breathe normally.  

“Did you say you didn’t sleep on your flight?” Aubrey asks, voice shaky, the words mumbled against Stacie’s skin.  

Stacie frowns, doesn’t quite understand the connection but she nods. “I was too worried about you.”  

Aubrey’s hands tighten around her and she can feel Aubrey softly smile.  

“Do you want to take a nap with me?” Aubrey says with a sniffle.  

“Absolutely,” Stacie says, and Aubrey pulls away enough to smile up at the brunette.  

Stacie reaches out, wipes away Aubrey’s tears as she leans in and presses her lips against Aubrey’s temple.  

“I should really go say hi to your mom first, though.”  

Aubrey pouts but she nods, knows the woman is right. “Go. Meet me upstairs in ten.”  

“If I take longer, come save me.”  

“Deal.”  

 

* * *

 

Fifteen minutes later they’re tangled together in bed, Stacie’s fingers running through Aubrey’s hair while Aubrey’s fingers trace random patterns on Stacie’s stomach.  

“I can’t believe she’s gone,” Aubrey whispers brokenly.  

“She loved you so much,” Stacie says, tugs softly at Aubrey’s hair to get the blonde to look up at her as she tries to give her the most reassuring look she can muster. “So, so much.”  

Aubrey’s tearing up again and Stacie encourages it, knows that Aubrey hadn’t cried even once from the moment they received the news up until Stacie stepped foot on the back porch.  

“What am I going to do without her?” Aubrey whispers and her voice is so small that Stacie tears up. “How am I supposed to deal with them without her?”  

Aubrey looks and sounds so heartbroken and she’s silently crying and Stacie doesn’t know what to do.  

“We’ll figure it out, okay?” Stacie says, tries to sound strong for the both of them but knows she doesn’t really succeed when she sniffles to avoid crying.  

“I love you,” Aubrey whispers, shifts so she can press her forehead against Stacie’s, eyes sliding closed.  

“I know,” Stacie says and Aubrey pulls away with a short, sharp laugh.  

“You’re gonna quote Star Wars at me now?”  

“Only if it means you’ll say “a woman who loves you” when you wake me up from my nap.”  

“No promises,” Aubrey says with a small smile, and it warms Stacie’s heart.  

“I said it to make you laugh,” Stacie confesses, reaches out to tuck a strand of hair behind Aubrey’s ear and softly ghost her thumb over the woman’s cheek.  

“Successfully done, doctor Conrad.”  

“Thank you, Mrs. Conrad,” Stacie teases and Aubrey smiles widely.  

“Don’t shout that too loudly in this house,” Aubrey warns but her smile doesn’t falter as she leans in to kiss Stacie.  

Stacie holds her close as Aubrey slowly kisses her, lets the blonde set the pace even though she’s itching to kiss her properly, especially when she remembers that this is the first time they’re kissing in almost five days.  

It also means that Stacie’s extra embarrassed when she has to pull away from Aubrey to yawn loudly.  

“You’re tired, baby,” Aubrey says, reaches out to softly rub Stacie’s arm. “Sleep.” 

“I don’t want you to cry by yourself,” Stacie protests but she yawns again.  

“I’m not going to fall asleep.” 

“Then I’m up,” Stacie says, struggling to sit up and not getting very far with Aubrey draped on top of her.  

Aubrey pushes at her shoulder, urges her to stay down and Stacie’s too tired to fight her.  

“Seeing you sleep will keep me calm,” Aubrey explains and Stacie can’t really argue with that, especially when Aubrey shifts away to lie on her back, tugging Stacie with her so Stacie’s head rests on Aubrey’s chest.  

She runs her fingers through Stacie’s hair and lulls the woman to sleep, and then ends up falling asleep as well, hand tangled in Stacie’s hair and her other arm flung over her head. 

Stacie wakes up to Aubrey’s leg curled around her own and face pressed into the crook of Aubrey’s neck while feeling like she can’t breathe. She carefully extricates herself to lay on her back and Aubrey seeks her out in her sleep, curling next to Stacie comfortably and it makes her smile.  

She doesn’t quite fall asleep again but she lingers comfortably between consciousness and slumber and she can feel Aubrey’s peaceful and even breaths.  

She’s pulled out of her haze at the feeling of Aubrey’s leg twitching against her own as Aubrey slowly starts waking up.  

Aubrey sighs softly, moves even closer to cling to Stacie as she turns her face into Stacie’s chest.  

Stacie softly trails her fingers along Aubrey’s spine, tracing random patterns on her back as Aubrey slowly wakes.  

“I’ve missed you,” Aubrey says and her voice is still hoarse, thick with sleep.  

“I’ve missed you too,” Stacie replies with a smile, presses a kiss to the crown of Aubrey’s head.  

“No more travelling for work,” Aubrey orders but her voice is soft and Stacie knows it’s more a request than a command.  

“Nope,” Stacie agrees. “Not for a while.” 

“Good.” 

“Did you have a nice nap?” Stacie asks when Aubrey shifts away from her, squirms in bed so she can share a pillow with Stacie.  

Aubrey nods, quickly kisses Stacie’s lips. “You’re very comfortable.” 

Stacie smiles and leans in for another kiss.  

Aubrey’s hand slides into Stacie’s hair, cups her neck as she deepens the kiss, licking into Stacie’s mouth.  

Stacie wants to pull back but Aubrey presses forwards, refusing to let her go.  

“Bree,” Stacie says with a warning when Aubrey slides on top of her.  

Aubrey only hums in response, pulls away from Stacie’s lips to trail kisses down her neck. She shifts her hips against Stacie’s thighs and settles more comfortably. 

“Aubrey, stop.” 

Aubrey whines in response but lets up, sitting up and pouting at Stacie. Her thumb brushes back and forth over Stacie’s ribcage and it’s super distracting but Stacie manages to force the words out anyway.  

“I’m not having sex with you.” 

“Why not?” Aubrey asks, crosses her arms. 

“Because you’re sad and it feels like I’m taking advantage.” 

“I’m literally on top of you.” 

“I’ll give you an orgasm, if that’s what you want.” 

Aubrey sighs dejectedly. “No, it’s no fun if I know you’re not enjoying it.” 

She starts climbing off Stacie, but the woman halts her with hands on her hips, sits up to press a quick kiss to her lips.  

“I really want to,” Stacie says, makes sure Aubrey meets her eyes so she can see the sincerity there. “But it’s also not a good idea to do it in the house,” Stacie explains, nips at Aubrey’s lips as she lets her hands trail up the blonde’s back. “There’s your mom and four brothers and a gaggle of wives and kids and I don’t want to risk it.” 

Aubrey’s eyes go wide at that and she has to admit that Stacie’s right.  

“Did you rent a car?” Aubrey asks softly and Stacie grins and nods.  

“Do we have any obligations after dinner?” 

She starts running her fingers through Aubrey’s hair and the woman moans, leans into her hand.  

“I don’t think so.” 

“Okay, then here’s the plan. After dinner we’ll make up some excuse and go for a drive, go look at some pretty stars and maybe get freaky in the backseat,” Stacie says.  

Aubrey’s smiling, but then she quirks her mouth, as if considering it and Stacie pouts.  

“Definitely get freaky in the backseat,” Aubrey says lowly and a grin blooms across Stacie’s face and Aubrey loves that she can still surprise Stacie.  

“Definitely,” Stacie confirms, leans in to kiss Aubrey lazily.  

“Good,” she mumbles against the woman’s lips.  

 

* * *

 

“Who is that?” Stacie whispers into Aubrey’s ear as she sidles up next to her, objective clear as she’s staring across the room at Aubrey’s teenage niece and a similarly aged boy standing with her.  

“Hm?” Aubrey says, looks up to follow Stacie’s gaze, an amused smile flickering across her face when she sees what Stacie’s looking at. “ _Oh_ , that’s Austin.”  

They exchange a quick look before looking back at the teenagers.  

“Does Cora have a boyfriend?” Stacie whispers, dropping her voice even lower.  

“No,” Aubrey says pointedly, her arched eyebrow and badly-hidden smirk belying the truth. “He’s just a friend.”  

“Who’s at a wake for Coraline’s great-grandmother?” Stacie points out carefully, but it doesn’t take Aubrey out of her joking mood.  

Aubrey doesn’t answer, just smirks into her cup. Stacie glances back at Coraline, watches the interaction closely but then she feels Aubrey shift next to her, and when she looks back at the blonde, Aubrey sighs deeply and it comes out a little shakily.  

Stacie’s knows Aubrey doesn’t want to cry in public and is swinging wildly between emotions at any given point so she leans in again and whispers, “I have some goss if you want to hear it?”  

“Always,” Aubrey says quickly, turning her body towards Stacie with interest, all traces of sadness temporarily gone.  

“Cora’s been asking me about colleges in New York.”  

Aubrey’s eyes go wide and she snaps her gaze back to the teenager, as if looking at the girl will somehow make the news less unbelievable.  

“What?” she whispers urgently.  

“Yeah. She tried to keep it subtle but she specifically mentioned NYU.”  

“Shit,” Aubrey says under her breath. “That’s gonna cause trouble.”  

“Where did William want her to go?”  

“Clemson. He’s an alum and I’m pretty sure he’s been donating to them for years to set her up.”  

“Well,” Stacie says with a grimace. “When she gets kicked out she’s more than welcome to stay with us.”  

“Don’t joke about that,” Aubrey says sharply and Stacie closes her eyes when she realises how callous her words had been.  

“Shit, I’m sorry, Bree.”  

Aubrey shakes her head, indicates that it’s okay with the flicker of a smile and Stacie reaches out to tangle their fingers, giving Aubrey’s hand a quick, reassuring squeeze before letting go again.  

“How are you doing?” Stacie asks, touches Aubrey’s elbow tenderly. 

Aubrey shoots her a wry smile.  

“The kids help,” she says thickly and Stacie adds more pressure to the fingers she has on Aubrey’s elbow. “Speaking of…”  

Stacie follows Aubrey’s gaze where it flickers to something low behind her, smiles widely when she sees the little girl toddling over to them.  

“Hi sweetheart,” Aubrey calls out and the girl giggles at her.  

“Hi,” she mumbles, reaching up and Aubrey takes the hint, lifts the toddler onto her hip. The girl cuddles into Aubrey and Stacie’s heart soars.  

“Hi Avery,” Stacie says cheerfully and the girl twists to look at her with a toothy grin.  

Stacie reaches out to playfully tickle the toddler, eliciting peals of laughter. Aubrey laughs with the girl, trying to shield her from Stacie’s fingers and the toddler buries her face in Aubrey’s neck to hide, and when her small arms wrap around Aubrey’s neck, Stacie sees the mood shift, sees the grief seep back into Aubrey’s eyes as she takes in a shaky breath.  

“Do you want me to—?” Stacie offers, gesturing towards the toddler but Aubrey shakes her head.  

She forces a smile when Avery pulls away and plays with a strand of her hair.  

“Did you have fun hanging out with Cora today?” Aubrey asks cheerfully and the girl nods, starts babbling about her day.  

Aubrey’s very cognisant of Stacie’s eyes boring into her, watching her closely. She sighs softly when Stacie pushes past their usual lack of intimacy in this crowd and splays her hand across the small of Aubrey’s back, and she can’t help but lean into the touch, appreciates how grounded it makes her feel.  

A couple of minutes later Avery squirms to get down and Aubrey gently sets her on her feet, keeping an eye on the girl to make sure she’s okay before turning into Stacie’s body but not stepping too closely.  

“I always thought she’d get to meet my kids,” Aubrey whispers brokenly and Stacie’s heart hurts. 

“Let’s go,” Stacie says strongly but Aubrey’s already shaking her head in protest. “Aubrey, if you don’t walk out of this room I will fireman-carry you out of here and nobody wants that.”  

She looks on the verge of tears but she manages a small smile, brushes her hand down Stacie’s arm when she walks past the brunette and out of the living room. Stacie follows her, thinks Aubrey’s going upstairs but instead she leads them out the back door and towards the barn.  

Aubrey leads them up the stairs to the lofted area where Stacie knows Aubrey used to hang out when she was younger. Stacie looks around the space, at how cozy it looks and she can’t help but smile. Aubrey’s hovering by one of the support beams and Stacie can see a picture pinned there and then Aubrey’s turning to her, looking at Stacie with bated breath and looking on the edge of a breakdown so Stacie sweeps her into a tight hug, cradling Aubrey’s head against her shoulder as Aubrey starts sobbing.  

Aubrey’s clutching at her sides desperately, as if she’s trying to hold Stacie even closer to her and her heart-wrenching sobs echo in the space. Stacie has to force herself to keep breathing normally, to stay calm, for her.  

“Why does it hurt so much?” Aubrey sobs between tears.  

“Because your favourite person in the world just died,” Stacie whispers, rubs her hand across Aubrey’s back tenderly. She hates that Aubrey’s hair is in an elaborate updo, would like nothing more than to card her fingers through Aubrey’s hair because she knows that’s the best way to keep her calm.  

“You’re my favourite person in the world,” Aubrey says and there’s a petulant tone to it that makes Stacie smile and press her fingers into the back of Aubrey’s neck to relieve the tension there.  

“We both know that’s not true, baby,” Stacie says, and Aubrey’s crying calms down a bit and Stacie’s grateful that she’s at least no longer hiccuping.  

Aubrey shifts her head on Stacie’s shoulder so she can look up sideways at Stacie, shoots her a watery smile.  

“I guess you are now,” she whispers, voice cracking and Stacie reaches up to wipe at Aubrey’s tear-stained cheeks.  

“Just because she’s gone doesn’t mean she can’t still be your favourite,” Stacie says, twists her head to press her lips against Aubrey’s forehead. “And it’s also not a distinction I’m happy with, not under these circumstances.”  

Aubrey scoffs, turns her head back against Stacie’s neck. Stacie can feel her take a deep breath, releasing it shakily, her whole body shuddering with the effort of it.  

“I’m okay,” Aubrey says softly as she pulls away, and Stacie isn’t sure if it’s meant to reassure Stacie or herself. “I’m okay.”  

“Come sit with me,” Stacie says, slides her hand down to hold Aubrey’s hand and lead her towards the couch.  

“We should go back,” Aubrey urges, knows what’s proper and what’s expected of her, but her voice carries no fight and she easily lets Stacie pull her along.  

“There’s like eighty people in that house. They won’t miss us.”  

Stacie drops onto the end of couch with a smile and Aubrey’s about to sit next to her when Stacie stops her with a hand on her waist.  

“C’mere,” Stacie urges.  

Aubrey glances over at the entrance to the barn where it’s barely visible from where she’s standing and acquiesces, lets Stacie pull her sideways onto her lap.  

Aubrey relaxes against her, loops her arms around Stacie’s neck and closing her eyes when Stacie wraps her arms around her and kisses her shoulder tenderly.  

Aubrey toes off her heels, lets them drop to the floor and stretches her feet, wincing when one of her ankles cracks.  

“I don’t want to nag,” Stacie says with a smile, trails her hand down Aubrey’s leg.  

Aubrey shoots her a dry look, already knowing what’s coming.  

“You’ve been on your feet all day in those,” Stacie says, shifts her fingers under Aubrey’s foot and pressing her thumb into the sole.  

Aubrey moans loudly, trembles and closes her eyes so Stacie does it again before moving to the other foot.  

“I’m so proud of you, you know that?” Stacie says, watching her closely.  

“I thought you were going to nag,” Aubrey teases, eyes still closed and Stacie flits her nails under Aubrey’s foot, making her giggle breathlessly and pull her foot away.  

Stacie laughs at the reflex but doesn’t tickle Aubrey again.  

“I mean it,” Stacie says, “I’m proud of you.”  

“For what?” Aubrey asks, opens her eyes to look at Stacie with a soft frown.  

“Keeping it together.”  

Aubrey makes a strangled sound, gestures to the barn they’re in.  

“For keeping it together around your family,” Stacie amends. “For dealing with all the snide shit they and their friends say to you, about us.”  

Aubrey smiles but it’s a sad smile, and she doesn’t look like she quite believes Stacie.  

“I know how hard it is for you to be here without having her to back you up anymore.”  

“I’m really grateful you’re here,” Aubrey whispers, voice cracking and Stacie holds her tighter.  

“I would never let you go through this alone, Bree, no matter how much they dislike me.”  

“They don’t dislike you,” she defends and Stacie knows it’s instinctual more than anything.  

“Just the concept of me, yeah, I know.” They exchange wry smiles because it’s a conversation they’ve had many times before. “I’m here for you. And when we go back to New York you can yell and scream and cry and it’ll be okay and I’ll be there to catch you. I’m proud of you for keeping it together until we go home.”   

“Thank you,” Aubrey says sincerely, knows she doesn’t have to but still needs to say the words. She smiles at Stacie to drive home the words and Stacie smiles back, softly rubs Aubrey’s leg.  

“I’m so tired,” Aubrey says with a long, suffering sigh.  

Stacie leans in and kisses Aubrey slowly, savouring it.  

“What time did you get up this morning?” Stacie asks when they pull away and Aubrey seems like she’s crashing.  

“Not too early.”  

“Tell me, you liar-face. I got up at seven to pee and you were already gone,” Stacie says and Aubrey narrows her eyes at the woman, more annoyed that she’d been caught than anything.  

“Five-thirty.”  

“We’re gonna have a talk about your sleeping habits when we get home.”  

“There’s the nag,” Aubrey teases but it’s overshadowed by her blushing and Stacie can’t help but grin.  

“What?” she prods.  

“I was hungry.”  

“You had cravings,” Stacie corrects with a beaming grin.  

Aubrey glares at her but Stacie can’t stop smiling at her.  

Their intense gaze is broken by the sound of voices carrying into the barn.  

“Shit,” Stacie mumbles under her breath, but Aubrey sits up to try and catch a glimpse of who it might be.  

“… are you sure this is okay?”  

Stacie sits up as much as she can with Aubrey still in her lap, trying to see when she hears the voices and Aubrey’s trying to suppress a smile. She looks over the banister of the loft and sees Aubrey’s niece and the boy from earlier.  

They look awkward as Coraline steps close for a hug and Aubrey giggles quietly when the boy hesitantly puts his hand on Coraline’s back. The girl steps closer, lays her head on the boy’s shoulder and he reaches up with his free hand but lets it hover in the air, as if not sure what to do and Stacie has to clamp a hand over her mouth to keep quiet.  

“This is mortifying,” Aubrey whispers.  

“Why can I feel the second hand embarrassment?” Stacie whispers back and Aubrey shakes her head.  

They turn back to the teenagers, see as the two pull away from their hug but hover near each other and Aubrey can see the boy lean in for a kiss.  

“Break it up,” Aubrey whispers urgently, smacking her head against Stacie’s body. “I don’t want to see this.”  

“Get your own kissing spot! This one’s taken!” Stacie calls out loudly and the teenagers spring apart.  

They see Coraline frantically whisper to the boy before all but shoving him out the barn.  

“Jeez, tough break,” Stacie whispers under her breath and Aubrey slumps against her with a laugh.  

They slouch back against the couch and Aubrey doesn’t shift or show any intent to move off Stacie’s lap when they hear slow steps coming up the stairs before Coraline’s standing in front of them looking guilty.  

Her expression falters at the sight of the two cuddled up on the couch.  

“You two kiss?” she asks, briefly forgets that she’d been pretending to be repentant. 

“Just because you don’t see us kiss doesn’t mean it doesn’t happen,” Stacie teases and it makes Coraline scrunch up her face in disgust.  

“I try not to think too much about adults kissing. Especially family.”  

Aubrey and Stacie laugh at that but then Coraline shifts awkwardly.  

“Are you going to tell my dad?” she asks carefully and Aubrey’s expression softens.  

She shakes her head and Coraline looks relieved.  

“As long as you don’t tell him you found us up here,” Stacie says.  

“What _were_ you doing up here?” Coraline asks teasingly.  

“Making out,” Stacie says and it’s a little disconcerting how in tandem they are when Coraline and Aubrey both roll their eyes.  

“Stacie,” Aubrey admonishes gently and Stacie quickly kisses her cheek and she smiles softly. She turns back to the teenager and says, “I needed a break from everything.”  

Coraline seems distracted by the casual intimacy between the two, doesn’t look like she even registered Aubrey’s words. She snaps out of it and meets two amused pair of eyes and blushes.  

“Sorry, what did you say?”  

“Don’t worry about it,” Aubrey says with a soft shake of the head.  

“I’ll leave you to it,” Coraline says, makes to leave when Aubrey calls out her name to halt her. Coraline turns to them and sees Aubrey and Stacie exchange a quick look. “What?”  

“I just wanted to say, you’re more than welcome in New York. To visit, or…” Aubrey trails off, pins the girl down with a knowing look.  

“You told her?” Coraline asks, looking at Stacie in betrayal.  

“I tell her everything,” Stacie says.  

“I’m not going to tell your dad,” Aubrey says strongly and it seems to calm the girl. 

“Thank you,” Coraline whispers gratefully and Aubrey can only smile in response, hating the panicked, fear-stricken look in the teenager’s eyes and hating how much she can relate to it.  

“You should go probably go see if Austin is okay,” Stacie teases and Coraline blushes a fierce red.  

“Yeah… I’ll let you two go back to making out,” Coraline tries to tease but she’s still blushing and the words come out with a shudder so they don’t carry much bite.  

Aubrey and Stacie laugh at Coraline’s expression but with a quick smile she’s gone and they’re left alone again.  

“Why didn’t you tell her?” Stacie asks when Aubrey shifts slightly in her lap, enough to lay her head on Stacie’s shoulder.  

“It wasn’t the right time,” Aubrey says with a small shrug. “I’ll tell her before we go home.”  

“It _would_ be nice having her in New York,” Stacie muses aloud. “You think she’d babysit for us?”  

“Definitely,” Aubrey says, nods. “She babysits Levi’s kids all the time.”  

“Perfect…”  

Stacie feels her neck get wet and she realises Aubrey’s crying again, silently this time, so she wraps her arms tighter around the blonde.  

“Oh, Aubrey,” she coos softly, rubs Aubrey’s back tenderly.  

“Why can’t I stop crying?” Aubrey mumbles against skin, and Stacie turns her head to softly kiss her forehead.  

“It’s the grief and the hormones,” Stacie says and then Aubrey’s pulling away from her shoulder with a pouty frown.  

“You walk a dangerous line every time you call me hormonal, you know that, right?” she says through her tears.  

“Oh, I know. But this time I’m actually right,” Stacie explains, quickly kisses Aubrey. “You’ve got like a tornado of conflicting emotions rushing through you and you didn’t sleep enough last night which is kinda on me for keeping us out so late—”  

“I had fun last night,” Aubrey interjects.  

“—but it means you’re not well-rested and your family is overwhelming on a good day and this is far from a good day and, oh, man, you’ve been in heels all day so your back must be killing you.”  

“You’re right,” Aubrey whispers.  

“What’s that?” Stacie presses with a grin and it makes Aubrey purse her lips.  

“You’re right. My back is killing me,” Aubrey admits but it’s said softly and makes Stacie frown because Aubrey’s not usually that quick to confess which means it must be particularly bad.  

“Why didn’t you say anything sooner?” Stacie begs, reaches up to cup Aubrey’s face to encourage the woman to look at her.  

“There’s nothing you can do about it.”  

“That doesn’t mean you don’t share it with me,” Stacie begs. “I want to be part of this.”  

“I know,” Aubrey admits, and she tears up again, starts crying. “I’m sorry.”  

“Hey, no,” Stacie quickly says, wipes at Aubrey’s tears and shaking her head. “Don’t cry about this. I’m not mad, I’m just worried about you.”  

Aubrey keeps crying, and Stacie’s growing nervous that she’d said something wrong.  

“Please don’t cry,” Stacie begs.  

“You’re so great, you know that?” Aubrey says through her tears and Stacie is filled with relief and amusement when she realises the tears aren’t a negative response to her words.  

“Are you crying because you’re happy?” Stacie asks gently, a soft smile on her face, adoration clear.  

Aubrey nods, and Stacie pulls her close, lets Aubrey bury her face in Stacie’s neck and sob, and she rubs her hand across the blonde’s back to soothe her.  

“You’re having a really rough day, huh?” she murmurs and Aubrey nods.  

“I could use a drink,” Aubrey says with a sigh.  

“You can have one,” Stacie starts, and Aubrey perks up and Stacie shouldn’t find such sick delight in crushing Aubrey's hope but she does, so her tone is a little too gleeful when she adds, “In about 24 weeks.”  

Aubrey drops her forehead back onto Stacie’s shoulder with a soft groan. “I hate you.”  

 

* * *

 

“Hey gorgeous,” Stacie calls out before pushing open the screen door and joining Aubrey on the front porch.  

Aubrey turns to her with a soft smile, but she looks tired and it has Stacie concerned.  

“Good morning,” Aubrey says, turns back to lean against the banister and sip from her mug.  

Stacie moves closer, stands behind Aubrey and wraps her arms around the blonde, one of her hands resting softly against Aubrey’s abdomen.  

“Why are you up so early?” Aubrey asks, leaning into the embrace and turning her head to look at Stacie.  

“Why are _you_ up so early?” Stacie replies pointedly, shooting Aubrey a look.  

“Sunrise,” Aubrey says, uses her mug to indicate to the rising sun that’s painting the sky with colour. “It was her favourite thing in the world.”  

Stacie presses her lips against Aubrey’s cheek in a lingering kiss, tightens her arms around Aubrey.  

“Are you sure you’re okay with leaving this afternoon?” Stacie asks. “We can stay longer if you want to.”  

Aubrey shakes her head, a serene smile taking over her face.  

“I want to go home,” Aubrey whispers and Stacie can’t help but smile. “Being here just makes it worse, I’ve realised.”  

“Okay,” Stacie says, and Aubrey turns in her embrace, mindful of the cup of tea she’s holding. “Whatever you want.”  

Aubrey smiles again, uses her free hand to grab Stacie’s shirt and pull her close, leaning up and kissing her deeply and languidly.  

“I love you,” Stacie says between kisses, pouts when it makes Aubrey pull away.  

“I love you too,” she whispers back softly. Her grip on Stacie’s shirt has loosened, and she trails her fingertips across the skin just under the hem of the shirt, moves them upwards and feels Stacie shiver.  

Stacie leans in and kisses Aubrey again, tongue sweeping into her mouth and Aubrey can’t help but moan.  

“Shh,” Stacie mumbles against Aubrey’s lips.  

“Let me moan in peace,” Aubrey complains, presses her lips against Stacie’s harder.  

“Your family will be waking up soon,” Stacie warns but Aubrey just kisses her harder, takes advantage of her open mouth to slip her tongue in and then Stacie’s the one moaning. She cups a hand around Aubrey’s neck to tilt her head backwards and take back control of the kiss.  

Aubrey shudders and has to pull away to take a breath.  

“I don’t care,” she says breathlessly, but when her lips move in again, Stacie turns her head and Aubrey’s lips end up on her cheek, making Aubrey whine in protest.  

“What do you mean you don’t care?”  

“I don’t want us to be different versions of ourselves when we’re here,” Aubrey says, accepting that the kissing has to be put on hold to have this conversation. “I want to kiss you in my grandmother’s house without having to hide it.”  

“Are you sure?” Stacie asks, even though her heart is soaring.  

“I’ve been thinking about it a lot. If grandma isn’t going to be around to defend me, I’m going to have to do it myself.”  

“That’s a radical step,” Stacie comments, and Aubrey tilts her head in question. “Going from simply defending yourself to openly kissing your wife in front of your family.”  

“I’ve been letting them get away with it for too long. I can’t let them treat us that way anymore and especially with a baby on the way. I don’t want the added stress and I don’t want them ever thinking that treating our child like that is acceptable.”  

“What brought this on?” Stacie asks, softly rubbing Aubrey’s back.  

Aubrey shifts, hesitates but Stacie waits her out patiently.  

“Coraline has known you for seven years, Stacie,” Aubrey starts, and comprehension goes through Stacie. “She has never seen us so much as kiss each other on the lips until two days ago. It made me realise that I’ve been unfair to you,” Aubrey confesses softly and she's avoiding Stacie’s gaze so she misses the way Stacie’s entire expression softens.  

“I understand, Aubrey,” Stacie says, reaches out to cup Aubrey’s neck, fingers sliding into hair and urging Aubrey to look at her. “But it really doesn’t bother me because I understand where you’re coming from and I know that it’s not how you really are. It's not how _we_ really are.”  

Aubrey smiles at the sincerity in Stacie’s tone.  

“You don’t have to do this for me,” Stacie urges, leans in to press a lingering kiss to Aubrey’s temple and Aubrey’s eyes flutter closed to relish in the moment. 

“I need to do this for our family,” Aubrey whispers. “I want our baby to grow up in a loving household.”  

“So do I,” Stacie says in the same hushed tone but Aubrey can sense a hesitation there.  

“I didn’t draw a line in the sand when we got married and I should have. So I’m doing it now,” Aubrey says firmly and it seems to be the final reassurance that Stacie needs because she’s smiling widely, beaming at Aubrey.  

“You know I’m not gonna go against any plan that includes you kissing me more, so…”  

Aubrey laughs loudly at that, genuine, and it’s such a beautiful sound that Stacie sighs deeply in relief, and Aubrey leans in, presses her forehead against Stacie’s with a sweet sigh.  

“You’re gonna miss your sunrise,” Stacie says and Aubrey pulls away quickly to turn in Stacie’s embrace.  

She leans back against Stacie, and when Stacie softly holds her, Aubrey reaches out to grasp Stacie’s hand and tangle their fingers. She awkwardly reaches down with the hand still holding her mug and lifts her shirt and then the hand she has tangled with Stacie’s guides their joined hands towards her abdomen.  

Stacie smiles, splays her fingers against the barely noticeable bump there, thumb softly stroking against skin and Aubrey sighs contentedly, melting against Stacie.  

They stay like that until it’s no longer considered dawn, Aubrey sipping from her tea and Stacie softly rubbing her baby bump.  

They hear footsteps in the house behind them, and Stacie glances over her shoulder, tightens her grip on Aubrey, who leans in closer to Stacie.  

“Your grandma would be proud of you,” Stacie whispers encouragingly.  

“Yeah,” Aubrey says, and she sounds almost at peace with it, and even though Stacie knows Aubrey won’t be alright about it for a while, it’s a start.  

Aubrey twists enough so she can quickly kiss Stacie’s lips before speaking.  

“Yeah, she really would be.”  


End file.
